Validating the time that an employee has worked has been around a very long time. Who could forget 1960s cartoon character Fred Flintstone punching his concrete tablet in and out at the Bedrock quarry?
Today, the task of clocking in and out is increasingly automated through various measures such as facial recognition and biometric technology. This is beneficial for both the employer and the employee to ensure they are paying their staff correctly and that they are getting the right pay for the hours they are working.
However, with that automation, particularly when it involves AI, there is an increasing need for more transparency and visibility.
Damien Durston, the Head of People Management Solutions at OneAdvanced ANZ, says these technology advancements are designed to enhance workplace efficiency and compliance.
"As AI becomes more prevalent in the workplace, Australian businesses face increasing scrutiny regarding compliance, fairness and transparency. The modern workplace requires AI use in HR to align with ethical principles and the law,” he said.
"Our people management platform ensures that automated decision-making is balanced with human oversight and that employees are informed and consulted on AI’s role in their working lives. Workers deserve to understand how they are measured and monitored using AI-driven insights. Without this level of transparency, businesses risk eroding employee trust and engagement.
"There is a clear pathway for Australian businesses to succeed with AI while empowering their workforce. Ethical AI in HR isn’t just about compliance; it’s about supporting a workplace where technology drives human potential, not diminishes it. Organisations prioritising responsible AI adoption will be better positioned to attract and retain talent, build stronger workplace cultures and stay ahead of regulatory changes."
Durston said many businesses were still using manual processes to capture time and attendance in the workplace whereas automation gives a business greater control over its number one cost of doing business – its payroll.
“What our technology does is validate the time that an employee has worked to the appropriate rule or award and then it tidies it up ready to process.
“We see our tech as enhancing business insights and efficiency, not compromising ethics. We focus on mobile applications for connecting employees to their workplace, which provide real-time data and generate exception reports for managers.”
One of the features of the OneAdvanced technology is geofencing, meaning that a worker cannot clock in for work unless they are within a 50-metre radius of their workplace. “This alleviates the potential for buddy clocking, buddy punching or ghost punching whereby someone else clocks an employee in. There is also facial recognition and biometric technology. These technologies are not only there for verification but also to track overtime, which results in fewer overtime discrepancies.”
Durston said privacy concerns are addressed through secure data handling in that biometric data is stored as an algorithm not as an image via Microsoft Azure and stored at “military level” data centres in Sydney and Melbourne.